Thunder Chickens Soar in Championships
The College Thunder Chickens rugby team returned to the pitch this fall after a three-semester hiatus due to the ongoing pandemic. The team had a highly successful fall season, winning the Gateway Conference championship and participating in the National Collegiate Rugby Division II National Tournament.
Head coach Ward Patterson, one of the founding members of the program, came out of retirement to coach the team this year. The outlook for the team was brighter than usual, thanks to some impressive recruiting by Coach Patterson and former head coach Tim Drysdale. Principia brought in six experienced freshmen from top-tier international competition in Croatia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
National Collegiate Rugby plays its 15-player season (15s) in the fall and its seven-player season (7s) in the spring. The Thunder Chickens’ sole national championship came in 7s competition in 2013. However, with a slew of young international talent and several underclassmen who played football at the Upper School, the team was poised for a breakout 15-player season this year.
The Thunder Chickens lived up to expectations and were a cut above the competition in the Gateway Conference this season. They dominated the three regular-season conference games, finishing 3–0 and outscoring their opponents 203–7. They continued to dominate in the conference playoffs and won the semifinal game 64–5 over Missouri Science & Technology and defeated Saint Louis University in the finals, 50–5.
The conference championship was Principia’s first 15s title since 2016 and gave them an automatic berth in the Round of 16 in the national tournament. The draw pitted them against non-conference rival University of Minnesota–Duluth in a game that was held in St. Louis in mid-November. The Thunder Chickens had to make some adjustments to their lineup, as they had multiple injured starters and one star player who had been suspended for an earlier red card.
The Thunder Chickens started off strong, taking a 19–7 lead midway through the first half, but Duluth took advantage of Principia’s undermanned squad and fought back. Duluth controlled play the rest of the game and won 43–34.
Principia returned the following day to battle Marquette University for an important consolation match. The Thunder Chickens, more relaxed and mentally prepared, dominated from the beginning and claimed a 43–5 victory.
“I am very pleased at the success and growth of the team,” says Coach Patterson. “We had some great talent, but also many complete rookies, and yet we were able to blend into an operational unit, winning all league matches and both conference playoff games.”
The future of Principia rugby is bright! With even more high-level international recruits on the way, the Thunder Chickens will look for continued success in 2022. 